San Francisco Coalition to End Biased ID Stops Celebrates Enactment of “Pretext” ID Stop Policy, Releases “Know Your Rights” Guide

The Coalition to End Harmful Stops, a group of more than 110 traffic safety and civil rights groups that have campaigned to limit the San Francisco Police Department’s use of racially motivated pretext stops, applauds the new “pretext stop” policy that went into effect yesterday. The Coalition has also released a “Know Your Rights” guide to inform the public of the new policy. The guide is available in English on the Coalition and San Francisco Public Defender’s Office websites; translated versions are forthcoming. A PDF version of the Know Your Rights guide is available for download via this link to the online press release.

Background

The San Francisco Police Commission, the independent oversight board that sets policy and adjudicates misconduct within the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD), voted in spring 2024 to adopt the new policy and gave the SFPD 90 days to implement it. The commission conducted extensive community outreach, including working groups with officers and community members, town halls, and officer-only meetings, and coordinated with SFPD leadership. The new policy limits when police can use certain traffic violations as the primary reason for a stop, citing extensive data showing that these types of stops are often used as a “pretext” to conduct unfounded searches.

Pretext stops have a disproportionate impact on Black drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians, who are more often targeted for parking or equipment violations. Pretext stops impose substantial fiscal and societal costs but produce few, if any, public safety benefits. San Francisco mirrors the state and nation in policing communities of color through pretext stops, which often do not result in traffic violations but can escalate to police use of force and even deadly consequences.

Coalition Quotes

“The primary goal of this policy has always been to keep people safe when they are stopped by the police, which is much more dangerous for a person of color in San Francisco,” he said. Brian Cox, Deputy Public Defender and Director of the San Francisco Public Defender’s Integrity Unit“As disability rights advocates, it is important for us to ensure that people know their rights and have the tools they need to safely assert them.”

“This policy will help prevent police from unnecessarily arresting people under the guise of a traffic stop. Not only is this a discriminatory tactic that disproportionately targets people of color, it is also dangerous. Time and time again, Black and brown people have been killed when these completely unnecessary confrontations escalate,” said Yoel Haile, director of the criminal justice program for the ACLU of Northern California.

“For too long, the San Francisco Police Department has disproportionately targeted and injured people of color through pretextual traffic stops. That ends now. We will monitor the San Francisco Police Department’s implementation of this policy and are prepared to take further action to ensure that racially motivated traffic stops never happen again in our city,” said Alison Goh, president of the League of Women Voters of San Francisco.

“GLIDE has a long history of standing in solidarity with our customers who have been unfairly targeted by police and against the biases that drive this type of racial profiling. This policy goes a long way toward ensuring that our customers – and all San Franciscans – are treated with respect and dignity. It is critical that accessible information reaches the community, particularly communities of color who have been disproportionately impacted, so they know their rights,” said Eleana Binder, Policy Manager, Center for Social Justice for GLIDE.

“This policy is a critical step in reaffirming that police powers must have clear limits. Without such limits, our constitutional and civil rights are at risk. By strengthening civilian oversight of law enforcement, this policy aims to reduce racial disparities in traffic stops and ensure fairer treatment for all,” said Sameena Usman, Senior Government Relations Coordinator for Secure Justice.

“The data is clear: controls under the pretext of illicit trafficking are a total failure. They represent a massive waste of resources that do not translate into arrests or the discovery of contraband. This policy will allow us to reinvest our resources in strategies that truly ensure our security,” said Max Carter-Oberstone, Deputy Chairman of the Police Commission.

“Pretext stops are racist, and I’m glad the Police Commission has finally taken action to end this practice. Too many people of color have been harassed for too long, with devastating consequences. It’s over,” said Paul Briley, executive director of legal services for prisoners with children.